The irony of the debate on banning Bangkok’s street food was that it took foreigners – mostly Western media – to point out how unique and vibrant street food here was before the military regime backpedaled a tad.

LONDON – There has been a lot of fuss lately about the handful of Muslim women who choose to bathe on French beaches wearing a special garment that covers the head (not the face), and much of the body. That garment – the so-called burkini – was invented in 2004 by an Australian-Lebanese woman named Aheda Zanetti, with the goal of enabling even the strictest Muslim women to swim or play sports in public. Little did Zanetti know that her creation would generate a national controversy.

AMSTERDAM — As an Anglo-Dutchman – British mother, Dutch father – I cannot help but take Brexit rather personally. I’m not a wholehearted Euro-enthusiast, but a European Union without Britain feels like losing a limb in a terrible accident.

The disconnect between the hype and reality of Thailand’s world-class bureaucracy hit new lows Friday when telecom DTAC, the new Digital Economy and Society Ministry, and our friends at The Nation hosted a talk on cryptocurrency and the blockchain revolution.

Last week, I was doing my routine run at my usual track. Afterwards, sinking into a chair, sweat drenching from every pore, I overheard a group of elderly puu yai gentlemen talking nearby. These were businessmen, captains of industries, and they were complaining about corruption that oozes out from everywhere, just as the sweat from my every pore.
I’ve been running here for the past 20 years, and I’ve heard the same complaint over and over. No matter which political party was in charge, and now with the military government. So, if governments change, why does corruption remain? There’s a number of reasons for this, one of which is the constant that remains despite the parade of different governments: the bureaucrats (kah-racha-karn), the nucleus in the day-to-day management of Thailand.

It was payback time. Thais called it “set zero” or reset. Starting afresh. Many were instantly gratified when the much-hated Election Commissioners were removed in a vote by the National Legislative Assembly last week.